User:Thomas Wood/Map Key

Work in progress - Map Key.

Replace examples column with rendering examples.

Physical

Roads

Different countries may classify these differently.

Feature	Comment	Mapnik	Osmarender
Motorway	A restricted access major divided highway, normally with 2 or more running lanes plus emergency hard shoulder. Equivalent to the Freeway, Autobahn etc..
Trunk	Important roads that aren't motorways. Typically maintained by central, not local government. Need not necessarily be a divided highway. In the UK, many 2digit "A" roads (eg A34) were formally designated Trunk roads although that definition is no longer absolute...
Primary	Administrative classification in the UK, generally linking larger towns.
Secondary	Administrative classification in the UK, generally linking smaller towns and villages
Tertiary	A "C" road in the UK. Generally for use on roads wider than 4 metres (13') in width, and for faster/wider minor roads that aren't A or B roads. In the UK, they tend to have dashed lines down the middle, whereas unclassified roads don't.
Unclassified	No administrative classification. Unclassified roads typically form the lowest form of the interconnecting grid network.
Residential	Roads accessing or around residential areas but which are not a classified or unclassified highway.
Track	Unpaved/unsealed roads for agricultural use; gravel roads in the forest etc.
Service	Generally for access to a building, motorway service station, beach, campsite, industrial estate, business park, etc. This is also commonly used for access to parking and trash collection. Sometimes called an alley, particularly in the US.
Bridleway	For horses, (in the UK, generally footpaths on which horses are also permitted)
Cycleway	For designated cycleways, i.e. mainly/exclusively for bicycles.
Footway	For designated footpaths, i.e. mainly/exclusively for pedestrians. This includes walking tracks and gravel paths.		File:A designated foopath.jpg
Pedestrian	For Roads , i.e. mainly/exclusively for pedestrians /Shopping Areas
Steps	For flights of steps on footways
Mini Roundabout	Small roundabout, often not more than paint on the road surface of a junction.
Stop	A stop sign
Traffic Signals	Lights that control the traffic
Crossing	Pedestrians can cross a street here - e.g. zebra crossing
Gate
Stile	Allow pedestrians to cross a wall or fence
Cattle Grid	Bars in the road surface that allow wheeled vehicles but not animals to cross. Sometimes known as a Texas Gate, even outside of Texas
Toll Booth	A road usage toll or fee is collected here
Incline	A slope or hill, may encounter slow moving trucks
Incline Steep	Just as incline, only steeper
Viaduct	A high and/or long bridge - more commonly carries water or trains (but see also waterway=aqueduct)
Motorway Junction	Indicates a junction (UK) or exit (US) ref should be set to the exit number or junction identifier. (Some roads - e.g. the A14 - also carry junction numbers, so the tag may be encountered elsewhere despite its name)
Services	A service station to get food and eat something, often found at motorways
Ford	The road crosses a stream or river, vehicles must enter the water node
Bus Stop	A small bus stop.

Cycleway

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
cycleway	lane		A lane is a route that lies within the roadway
cycleway	track		A track is a route that is separate from the road.
cycleway	opposite_lane		lane in the opposite way (a "contraflow" lane)
cycleway	opposite_track		track in the opposite way (that is, separate from the road)
cycleway	opposite		just permitted to cycle in the opposite way (one way street except for cycles). Note - such streets are common in the Netherlands and Denmark, for example, but are rare in the UK (although they do exist): often, instead, actually the street is two-way as normal for its whole length except for the very short section past the no-entry sign at the end, where cycles are excepted from the no-entry by means of a short lane separated by an island. This is called a "cycle plug". In some places this has been represented as a tiny segment of one way street at the end with an adjacent cycleway, forming a little triangle with the road they join to.
cycleway	User Defined

Tracktype

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
tracktype	grade1		paved track or heavily compacted hardcore.
tracktype	grade2		unpaved track; surface of gravel or densely packed dirt/sand.
tracktype	grade3		unpaved track; A mixture of hard materials and soft. Quite compact
tracktype	grade4		unpaved track; tire marks, with plant growth in between. Mostly dirt, but some hard materials, or compressed materials mixed in.
tracktype	grade5		unpaved track; subtle tire marks, lack of hardcore, Soft with low grip, subtle on the landscape.

Waterway

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
waterway	river		River (Other languages).
waterway	canal		An artificial open waterway used for transportation, waterpower, or irrigation.((478) Other languages).
waterway	stream		a naturally-forming waterway that is too thin to be classed as a river. Maybe you can just jump over it.
waterway	drain		An artificial waterway for carrying storm water or industrial discharge.
waterway	dock		An 'enclosed' area of water used for loading, unloading, building or repairing ships.
waterway	lock_gate		A thing to raise/lower the water level for vessels, often found in canals.
waterway	turning_point		A place to turn the driving direction for vessels, where the boats are longer than the river/canal is wide.
waterway	aqueduct		A bridge carrying a channel for supplying water (Other languages).
waterway	boatyard		Boat yard - a place for constructing, repairing and storing vessels out of the water.
waterway	water_point		A place to get fresh water e.g. for caravans.
waterway	waste_disposal		A place to release used water e.g. for caravans.
waterway	mooring		A place for anchoring vessels.
waterway	weir		A barrier built across a river, usually to divert water for industrial purposes. Water can still flow over the top.
waterway	User Defined

Railway

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
railway	station		Railway station (Other languages).
railway	halt		A small station, may not have a platform, trains may only stop on request.
railway	viaduct		A high or long bridge with intermediate support piers (Other languages).
railway	crossing		A point where pedestrians may cross.
railway	level_crossing		A point where rails and roads cross.
railway	rail		Full sized passenger or freight trains in the standard gauge for the country or state
railway	tram		One or two carriage rail vehicles, usually sharing motor road (Other languages)
railway	light_rail		Short/light passenger trains. Metro systems.
railway	subway		A passenger rail service running mostly underground.
railway	preserved		A railway running historic trains, usually a tourist attraction (changed to preserved from preserved_rail as "rail" is redundant).
railway	disused		A section of railway which is no longer used but where the track and infrastructure remains in place.
railway	abandoned		The course of a former railway which has been abandoned and the track and infrastucture removed. Designation not to be used if the feature has been turned into another use, eg cycleway.
railway	narrow_gauge		Narrow-gauge passenger or freight trains.
railway	monorail		A railway with only a single rail.
railway	User Defined

Aeroway

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
aeroway	aerodrome		An Aerodrome (UK), Airport (US), see also military=airfield
aeroway	terminal		Airport passenger building
aeroway	helipad		Helicopter start/landing pad
aeroway	runway		A strip of land kept clear and set aside for airplanes to take off from and land on. (Other languages)
aeroway	taxiway		Where airplanes manouevre between runways and parking areas.
aeroway	apron		A place where planes are parked.
aeroway	User Defined

Aerialway

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
aerialway	cable_car		A cabin or gondola cable car run.
aerialway	chair_lift		An open chairlift run.
aerialway	drag_lift		An overhead tow-line for skiers and riders.

Power

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
power	tower		For towers or pylons carrying high voltage electricty cables. Normally constructed from steel latticework. Should not be used for electricity or telephone cables carried on single wooden poles.
power	line		A way following the path of power cables.

Man Made

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
man_made	works		Industrial building to produce something
man_made	beacon
man_made	survey_point		Triangulation pillars, geodetic vertices, and fixed equipment used by topographers (e.g. DGPS radio stations)
man_made	power_wind		Wind generated power, see also man_made=windmill
man_made	power_hydro		Power generated by water (from a river, lake, tide, ...)
man_made	power_fossil		Power generated by burning fossils (oil, gas, ...)
man_made	power_nuclear		Nuclear power plant
man_made	tower		A tall and often lean building
man_made	water_tower		A tower to store water in, usually found on hills beside or in a town
man_made	gasometer		Building to store gas in, usually round and huge
man_made	reservoir_covered
man_made	lighthouse		Sends out a light beam to guide ships
man_made	windmill		Windmill, mostly ancient and out of order, see also man_made=power_wind
man_made	pier		A "bridge into the ocean", usually for recreation
man_made	User Defined

Leisure

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
leisure	sports_centre
leisure	golf_course
leisure	stadium		A major sports arena with substantial tiered seating
leisure	marina		For mooring leisure yachts and motor boats
leisure	track		e.g. running, cycle-racing, greyhound, horses
leisure	pitch		e.g. a field for playing football/soccer, cricket, baseball sports
leisure	water_park
leisure	slipway		Boats can be launched here
leisure	fishing
leisure	nature_reserve
leisure	park
leisure	playground
leisure	garden
leisure	common		An area where the public can walk anywhere (UK)
leisure	User Defined

Amenity

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
amenity	pub		A place selling beer and other alcoholic drinks; may also provide food or accommodation (UK)
amenity	biergarten		http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biergarten
amenity	cafe		a cafe
amenity	restaurant		Restaurant (not fast food)
amenity	fast_food		Fast Food Restaurant
amenity	parking		Car Park. Only nodes will get a parking symbol. Areas will be colored.
amenity	bicycle_parking		Park for bicycles
amenity	fuel		Petrol station; gas station; marine fuel; ...
amenity	telephone		Public telephone
amenity	toilets		Public toilets (might require a fee)
amenity	recycling		recycling facilities (bottle banks etc.)
amenity	public_building
amenity	place_of_worship		A church, mosque, or temple, etc. Note that you also need religion=<whatever>, usually denomination=<whatever> and preferably name=<whatever> as well as amenity=place_of_worship. See the article for details.
amenity	grave_yard		A (smaller) place of burial, often you'll find a church nearby. Large places should be landuse=cemetery instead.
amenity	post_office
amenity	post_box
amenity	school		school and grounds
amenity	university		a University campus or buildings
amenity	college		a College campus or buildings
amenity	pharmacy		Pharmacy dispensing=yes dispensing=no or omitted
amenity	hospital
amenity	library		A public library (municipal, university, ...) to borrow books from.
amenity	police
amenity	fire_station
amenity	bus_station		Bus Station (this is a big station, a bus stop is highway=bus_stop)
amenity	theatre		a theatre or opera house
amenity	cinema		a cinema
amenity	arts_centre		an arts centre
amenity	courthouse		a place where justice is dispensed
amenity	prison		a prison
amenity	bank		a bank (for a bank that also has an ATM, use amenity=bank;atm)
amenity	atm		an ATM or cash point
amenity	townhall		A town hall building, regardless of whether it is currently used for administrative purposes
amenity	User Defined

Shop

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
shop	bakery		Selling bread, cakes, ...
shop	butcher		Selling meat
shop	chandler		Selling candles and soap
shop	supermarket
shop	User Defined

Tourism

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
tourism	information
tourism	camp_site
tourism	caravan_site
tourism	picnic_site
tourism	viewpoint
tourism	theme_park
tourism	hotel		Wikipedia:Hotel
tourism	motel		Wikipedia:Motel
tourism	guest_house		Wikipedia:Guest House
tourism	hostel		Wikipedia:Hostel
tourism	attraction
tourism	zoo
tourism	User Defined

Historic

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
historic	castle		Other languages
historic	monument		An object, especially large and made of stone, built to remember and show respect to a person or group of people. Other languages
historic	museum		Other languages
historic	archaeological_site		Excavation place for ancient remains
historic	icon
historic	ruins		Remains of a castle or alike, usage was abandoned
historic	User Defined

See also railway=preserved for historic trains.

Landuse

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
landuse	farm		Animals, vegetables, flowers, fruit growing (Other languages)
landuse	quarry		Surface mineral extraction (Other languages)
landuse	landfill		Place where waste is dumped upon. Other languages
landuse	basin		Other languages
landuse	reservoir		Stores water, may covered or uncovered ((3196) Other languages)
landuse	forest		Managed forest or woodland plantation (Other languages)
landuse	allotments		A piece of land given over to local residents for growing vegetables and flowers (UK)
landuse	residential		Predominantly houses or apartment buildings
landuse	retail		Predominantly shops
landuse	commercial		Predominantly offices
landuse	industrial		Predominantly workshops, factories or warehouses
landuse	brownfield		Describes land scheduled for new development where old buildings have been demolished and cleared
landuse	greenfield		Describes land scheduled for new development where there have been no buildings before
landuse	cemetery		Place for burials. Smaller places (e.g. with a church nearby) may use amenity=grave_yard instead.
landuse	village_green		An area of common land, usually grass, in the centre of a village (quintessentially English - defined separately from 'common land' under the Commons Registration ACt 1965 and the Commons Act 2006)
landuse	recreation_ground		An open green space for general recreation, which may include pitches, nets and so on, usually municipal but possibly also private to colleges or companies
landuse	User Defined

Military

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
military	airfield
military	bunker		Buildings, often build from concrete, to stand even heavier fire.
military	barracks		Buildings where soldiers live and work.
military	danger_area		Usually a large marked area around something like a firing range, bombing range, etc which is an exclusion zone.
military	range		Where soldiers have practice with their weapons (firing, bombing, artillery, ...).
military	User Defined

Natural

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
natural	spring		A place where ground water flows naturally from the ground ((hydrology, land) (3596) Other languages)
natural	peak		top of a hill or mountain
natural	cliff		Rock face
natural	scree		Loose rock
natural	scrub		Uncultivated land covered with bushes or stunted trees
natural	fell		Bare upper lying uncultivated land principally covered with grass and often grazed.
natural	heath		Bare lower lying uncultivated land with bushes but little or no tree cover.
natural	wood		Natural woodland (trees)
natural	marsh		waterlogged area
natural	water		Lakes, etc. Always keep water on the right side of the segment and land on the left side, in relation to segment direction.
natural	coastline		The coastline should run anti-clockwise, i.e. land on the left side and water on the right side of the segment, for it to show correctly.
natural	mud		(Other languages)
natural	beach		Beach: sand, gravel or pebble (Other languages)
natural	bay		Bay (Other languages)
natural	land		Land that exists within another area, such as a lake. (i.e an island). Keep water on the right and land on the left side in relation to segment direction. Layering may also be required
natural	User Defined

Non Physical

Route

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
route	bus
route	ferry
route	flight
route	ncn		ncn = National Cycle Network (in the UK)
route	subsea
route	ski
route	tour
route	pub_crawl
route	User Defined

Boundary

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
boundary	national
boundary	administrative		e.g. State, county, local council (unclear how these are specified. Clarify!)
boundary	civil
boundary	political		Electoral boundaries
boundary	national_park		Area of outstanding natural beauty, set aside for conservation and for recreation (Other languages)

Sport

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
sport	10pin		10-pin Bowling
sport	athletics
sport	baseball
sport	basketball
sport	bowls		Lawn bowls
sport	climbing		Rock climbing - natural or articial climbs (climbing walls)
sport	cricket
sport	cricket_nets		Cricket nets for practise
sport	croquet
sport	cycling
sport	dog_racing
sport	equestrian
sport	football		(Clarification is needed here; does this refer to the game known as "soccer" in North America, or to something like American/Canadian football? Given that sport=soccer is also listed, I'm inclined towards the latter interpretation... Dshpak 23:10, 4 August 2007 (BST))
sport	golf
sport	gymnastics
sport	hockey
sport	horse_racing
sport	motor
sport	multi
sport	pelota
sport	racquet
sport	rugby
sport	skating
sport	skateboard
sport	soccer
sport	swimming
sport	skiing
sport	table_tennis
sport	tennis		Tennis courts

Abutters

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
abutters	residential		predominantly houses and apartments
abutters	retail		predominantly shops
abutters	industrial		predominantly workshops, factories, warehouses
abutters	commercial		office buildings, business parks, etc.
abutters	mixed

Accessories

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
fenced	yes/no
lit	yes/no		Street lighting

Properties

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
area	yes		Making a closed way render solid
bridge	yes
tunnel	yes
cutting	yes
embankment	yes
lanes	Num		Number of travel lanes in each (or only permitted) direction
layer	-5 to 5		This numerical tag used to be `elevation', however it got renamed due to confusion with the ele and altitude tags used by tracklog imports.
surface	paved/unpaved
ele	Num		Altitude (meter over sea level)
width	Num		Width of way in metres
est_width	Num		A rough guess of the width of way/segment in metres
depth	Num		Depth in metres
est_depth	Num		A rough guess of the Depth in metres
start_date	Date		Date feature was created
end_date	Date		Date feature was removed

Restrictions

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
access	yes/private/ permissive/ unknown/no		General access permission. 'permissive' means there is no legally-enshrined right of access, but the landowner has allowed it at his/her discretion. 'private' means access is restricted to the landowner.
bicycle	yes/private/ permissive/ unknown/no		Access permission for bicycles. For values see above
foot	yes/private/ permissive/ unknown/no		Access permission for pedestrians. For values see above
goods	yes/private/ permissive/ unknown/no		Vans and trucks?? See above
hgv	yes/private/ permissive/ unknown/no		Access permission for Heavy Goods Vehicles (UK), e.g. trucks. See above
horse	yes/private/ permissive/ unknown/no		Access permission for horse riders. For values see above
motorcycle	yes/private/ permissive/ unknown/no		Access permission for motorcycles. For values see above
motorcar	yes/private/ permissive/ unknown/no		Access permission for (motor) cars. For values see above
psv	yes/private/ permissive/ unknown/no		Access permission for Public Service Vehicles (UK), e.g. buses and coaches. See above
motorboat	yes/private/ permissive/ unknown/no
boat	yes/private/ permissive/ unknown/no
oneway	yes (or true/1)/ -1/ no (or false)		The permitted direction for a segment, is indicated by segment direction (enable arrows!). -1 for oneway direction opposed to segment direction.
noexit	yes		A dead end road/cul de sac with only one access road
date_on	Date		Date restriction starts
date_off	Date		Date restriction stops
day_on	Day of Week		Day restriction starts
day_off	Day of Week		Day restriction stops
hour_on	Time		Time restriction starts
hour_off	Time		Time restriction stops
maxweight	Num		Weight limit in tonnes
maxheight	Num		height limit in metres
maxwidth	Num		width limit in metres
maxlength	Num		length limit in metres
maxspeed	Num		Maximum speed in km/hr
minspeed	Num		Minimum speed in km/hr
toll	yes		Toll or fee must be paid to access way, see also highway=toll_booth

Naming

Name

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
name	User Defined		The common default name
int_name	User Defined		International name
nat_name	User Defined		National name
reg_name	User Defined		Regional name
loc_name	User Defined		Local name
old_name	User Defined		Historical name
name:lg	User Defined		Name in different language eg. name:fr=Londres. See: Bilingual_street_names

References

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
ref	User Defined		The common default reference (eg M25)
int_ref	User Defined		International reference (eg E30)
nat_ref	User Defined		National reference
reg_ref	User Defined		Regional reference
loc_ref	User Defined		Local reference
old_ref	User Defined		Historical reference
ncn_ref	number		The number reference (eg 54) of a National Cycle Network route. In the UK, national routes have single-or double-digit numbers with a red background on the signs.
rcn_ref	number		The number of the regional cycle network. In the UK the regional routes have double-digit numbers with a blue background on the signs.	(Sign showing both national and regional spur).
lcn_ref	number		The number of the local cycle network
source ref	User Defined		To record the URI, source reference (eg Landsat) or other link to physical sources.
icao	User Defined		ICAO International airport codes
iata	User Defined		IATA International airport codes

Places

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
place	continent		continent
place	country		country
place	state		state
place	region		region
place	county		county
place	city		As defined by national/state/provincial government. Often over 100,000 people
place	town		As defined by national/state/provincial government. Generally smaller than a city, between 10,000 and 100,000 people
place	village		As defined by national/state/provincial government. Generally smaller than a town, below 10,000 people
place	hamlet		As defined by national/state/provincial government. Generally smaller than a village, just a few houses
place	suburb		Named area of town or city. Often a suburb is its own municipality, with separate government, and should be tagged as such.
place	island		identifies an island

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
place_name	User Defined		Only for areas. For nodes use 'name' instead (see Notes). It may do no harm to use both, though.
place_numbers	User Defined		For property numbers
postal_code	User Defined		The postal code
is_in	User Defined		For categorisation - for example place=suburb; name=Eccleshall; is_in=Sheffield,South Yorkshire,England,UK

Annotation

some keys are allowed with one of the following values.

Key	Value	Element	Comment	Example
note	user defined		A note to yourself or to other mappers. There is a map where you can view notes
description	user defined		Text that might be viewable to the end user (perhaps using a search system or a map with pop-ups).
image	URI		Reference to an image (use the "source_ref" key below when the image is referencing the source of the element)
source	extrapolation		Extension of information from a known source
source	knowledge		Local or common knowledge
source	historical		from out-of-copyright mapping or other historical document
source	image		photograph or video
source	survey		gpx track or other physical survey
source	voice		Voice recordings, eg dictaphone
source	User Defined
source_ref	User Defined		To record the URI, source reference (eg Landsat) or other link to physical sources.
created_by	User Defined		Defined by the editor used (JOSM, applet, osmeditor, etc), mainly to deal with Utf8 errors. Should not be changed manually.